“Despacito” broke a record this week to become the most streamed song in history. It was also banned in Malaysia.
The Daddy Yankee and Luis Fonsi song has been banned on state-run TV and radio, due to its “obscene” lyrics, though the song can still be played on private radio stations, streaming music sites, and YouTube. According to the Associated Press, the Justin Bieber remix of the song has not been banned.
A member of Malaysia’s Islamic party, Amanah, said in a statement: “I see this as a serious matter as the song is being sung by young people without knowing the real meaning of the words.”
“Despacito” translates to “slowly” and is a fairly upfront song about seduction.
A Malaysia cover of the song has 8 million views on YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gR965hqGBd0
H/T Bloomberg